During an initial cell search (ICS) or power-up of a UE, a training sequence of known symbols is used by the receiver to estimate the transmitted signal. In a time division duplex (TDD) signal, for example, the midamble of a TDD frame conventionally contains the training sequence of symbols. The conventional cell search process consists of a Step 1 algorithm which processes a primary synchronization code (PSC) on the primary synchronization code channel (PSCH) for synchronization channel (SCH) location determination. A Step 2 algorithm processes the secondary synchronization codes (SSC) for code group determination and timeslot synchronization, and a Step 3 algorithm performs midamble processing.
Variable control oscillators (VCOs) are commonly used at the end of an automatic frequency control (AFC) process to adjustably control the frequency of the receiver to achieve synchronization between a transmitter and a receiver. The input for the VCO is a control voltage signal, which is typically generated by a control circuit that processes the amplitude and phase of the received symbols. A common problem during an AFC process is the initial fluctuations resulting from a potentially significant frequency offset between the transmitter and the receiver.